PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Dehradun
Chief secretary Anand Bardhan has said the possibility of solar powered pumping drinking water projects should be explored in the State to ensure their sustainability and cost-effectiveness. He was addressing the meeting of the Expenditure Finance Committee held at the State secretariat on Saturday. During the meeting, the committee provided recommendations to proposals from various departments. The CS mandated that solarisation should be explored in the construction of all pumping drinking water projects. He also directed the Planning department to issue a government order in this regard.
The CS expressed displeasure over the fact that departments still pay consultancy fees as a percentage of the project cost. He said that instead of a percentage of the project cost the consultants should be given a lump sum amount. The CS said that he had given direction in this regard earlier also. He directed that the government order issued in this regard should be re-circulated to all the departments.
The CS called for adoption of a serious approach in the cases of unexpected cost overruns for projects or any part of a project. He stated that any agency responsible for the cost overruns due to inaccurate estimates should be prosecuted as per the rules. He directed the Planning Department, under the guidance of the Public Works Department, to develop guidelines for cost variances. This will prevent unnecessary project cost overruns, he said.
The CS said that AYUSH offers a very good potential and emphasized the need to develop good projects in this direction. He added that special attention to project locations should be made. He also emphasized the need to ensure the availability of a nearby hostel for the proposed ITI in Garud (Bageshwar). The CS stated that this would significantly benefit students seeking admission to the ITI.
Principal secretary RK Sudhanshu, R Meenakshi Sundaram, secretary Dilip Jawalkar, Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Sridhar Babu Addanki and C Ravishankar along with other senior officers and senior officials of the concerned departments were present on the occasion.
